


Blood Tennis

by MarjorieAlyss



Category: Prince of Tennis
Genre: Quit, Street, Tennis, violin
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-01-04
Updated: 2015-03-10
Packaged: 2018-03-05 09:25:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 8,425
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3114788
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MarjorieAlyss/pseuds/MarjorieAlyss
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Back in America Ryoma gets caught up in a dangerous type of street tennis called "Blood Tennis". When his parents find out they decide to move the family to Japan to split Ryoma from that scene entirely and give him a "fresh start". Will the Seigaku tennis regulars be able to save him? Does he even want to be saved? And how can they when they don't even know Echizen Ryoma  exists?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prolog

Notes filled the air around me as I slid the bow over the strings of his violin once more...

Wrong

All wrong...

It should be Kevin playing as I sat on (more like laid across) a bench in the headquarters. 

But Kevin wasn't here. He wasn't in this stupid room in this stupid temple in a stupid foreign country whose language he had never quite gotten his tongue around. No, while I was stuck here playing his prized violin for him in front of an audience of none...

.... He was still in a coma back in an American hospital.

Or at least he might be, he had been for the better half of the past month, but I had no way to know if he had woken up since he was there and I was here.

I feel tears sliding down my cheeks but refuse to acknowledge such a weakness. I hadn't cried when the blond was laying motionless on the court beside my feet and I wouldn't cry now. The bow drops from my numb fingers and I stare at it. Annoyed with myself for being so careless and remembering the first time the "Puppy" of our team had placed this same instrument in my hands.

One year, six months, and some odd days ago

"Come here Kitten." Eleven year old Kevin Smith sudden says after abruptly stopping awkwardly in the middle of his piece, causing his ten year old (Only for a few more weeks!!) doubles partner to open his eyes and lazily look at the blond questioningly. He was rather comfortable where he was thank you very much and had almost been lulled to sleep by the sound of Kevin's violin.

"What do you want Kev?" He drawls in Japanese just to slightly irritate the other boy. His attempts, for once, however seem to have little affect on the happy-go-lucky violinist. He soon finds himself with a violin in his hands, back pressed up against Kevin's chest as his fingers are placed on the neck of the violin.

"This is an E chord" The blond says and Ryoma rolls his eyes in exasperation.

"What ever gave you the idea I wanted to learn how to play this?" He demanded and his doubles partner laughs,

"This way I know that no matter what happens to me my violin will never stop playing."

Present

I bend down and pick the slim wooden bow up off the ground. At first learning had been simply for Kevin's benefit but before long I had found that, while not as enjoyable as tennis, I had fun all the same....

... Now it was the only thing left of my other half that THEY hadn't deemed "dangerous" and taken away from me. They weren't my parents. My parents were too caught up in their lives to notice mine. My Ka-san was always too busy with her job as a lawyer to notice much of went on at home and as long as I played at least one match a day with him Oyoji was just fine in his world of trashy magazines. They never questioned why their eight year old son was suddenly saying out so late, why he seemed almost dead on his feet for a while, why he was coming home injured...

...IF they even noticed that is...

They didn't notice he was sneaky out of the house at night. They didn't notice when he started smoking at nine and a half years old. They didn't notice that he was worried sick about Kevin whenever the blond actually went home.

They didn't know that he had friends. They didn't know that he found singles tennis not only "lonely" but scary to an apparently impressive extant (According to Chip anyway... He couldn't deny that his fear wasn't completely the most rational thing in the world...). They didn't know that not only was he a doubles player but that he was the team's "Double's specialist". They didn't know he had opened the third door at eight and a few months. Nor did they know that he was a level six tennis player. They didn't know that given the choice between being Echizen Ryoma or being Kitten "Rye" Samurai....

.... He would choose being Kitten in a heart beat every single time.

 

And if they didn't know that...

... Then what DID they know?

__________________ LINE ____________________________________

 

The sound of a violin playing rings through the air and though it's not the steady beat of tennis Nanjiro Echizen couldn't be happier.

At least it wasn't silence.

At least it wasn't fighting.

At least it wasn't blood tennis.

A shiver runs down his spine at the thought. Blood tennis. HOW Ryoma had gotten himself mixed in with THAT crowd he would never know...actually, wasn't that why?

Because Ryoma had felt that he was nothing to this family if he wasn't holding a racket... But to them, to that street team of his, he as important as breathing without anything tennis involved. Despite what Rinko thought though Nanjio KNEW.

They would fail...

It was written in everything about their youngest son. The board looks, the heavy silence that was only broken when it absolutely had to be, the way Ryoma straight out refused to pick up a racket, the accusing eyes that met his each attempt to get the twelve year old on a court, the violin.

Not for the first time Nanjiro wondered if what they were doing was right.

His wife was completely for it. She vowed to do everything she could to stop her little boy from going down that path. Convinced that it would kill him and so what if he refused to pick up a tennis racket? He was playing the violin now with the time he would have used on those horrible courts in the past. And, as an added bonus, it meant the boy couldn't get injured in a match at all!

Nanjiro knew how dangerous it could be, had memorized the statistics that favored her claim. But the betrayal that brat had in his eyes when they had told him they were moving to Japan and he wasn't to keep in contact with his "friends" was hard to take. The way the kid now flinched whenever Rinko or he talked to or went to touch him made Nanjiro feel like a monster. The sound of Ryoma sobbing, his strong put together little rival who never NEVER cried, sobbing himself to sleep these past few nights told him he was a failure as a father. And every match offer he made that the brat turned down with little more than a glare before walking away was like a punch in his gut.

Rinko simply brushed it off saying Ryoma would get over all of it and thank them one day. But she had never seen...

... She didn't know the look of pure blissful happiness on Ryoma's bloodstained face, the passion that he had put into that game before it was interrupted and he'd been dragged off the court, the skill level he had shown while still on that court.. Rinko hadn't been the one to witness a Prince of tennis that actually enjoyed what he was doing. Nanjiro sure knew that he had NEVER seen ANY of it before that day and doubted that he would see it again.

Hopefully Seigaku would help his little prodigy because he was completely at a loss.....


	2. The First Day

"Third door ope..." A voice, Chip's he believed, fades out as he allows the Pinicle of Perfection to wrap around him and push him farther away from reality. Sending him spiraling towards that scary cliff that both frightened and enticed him. His eyes starting to get a red gleam to them as he allows the ball to fly by him, mear centimeters away from his face...

...The sound of racket hitting ball behind him and the ball whisteling back past his ear is all he needs to know that Kevin is still able to stand.

The edge of the cliff is closer now, to close for his liking really, and he starts to struggle against the chains that seem to be dragging him towards his death, his eyes taking on more and more of a red color until there is nothing left but a golden hue in the two simmering pools of bright crimson. Chains that disapear with a single sentence from the player sharing his side of their cage.

"Don't worry Rye, I'll catch you..."

Twelve year old Echizen Ryoma shoots straight up in his bed, the alarm clock next to his head blairing out that it had been about time for him to wake up anyway right after he had just managed to calm himself down. Rubing sleep and tears from his eyes he yawns and turns off the cursed contraption. Feeling an overwhelming sense of dread as his eyes register seeing the neatly pressed and folded Seigaku uniform that someone had put on his desk chair for him over night.

He couldn't do it.

He couldn't stand to go to some new school where everything was different and tennis was the major sport instead of football. He couldn't "Start fresh", as the woman who looked like his Ka-san but wasn't had put it. Not today. Or tomorrow. Or the next day. Or the day after that....

... Not on a day he is without Kevin...

Soft footsteps alert him to the fact that Nanako-san, the only one he is currently somewhat talking to as she really has nothing to do with any of this, is approaching his door before the timid knock even finds it's way from the door.

"Ryoma-kun, I put your uniform on your chair last night. You need to get up now for school, Aunt Rinko said that you like American breakfasts so I made you eggs and toast." comes her innocent voice through the door and Ryoma's eyebrow twitches at the last part of her words...

... He LOATHED American breakfasts...

.... Shouldn't Rinko KNOW that?

"Ryoma-kun? Your going to be late if you sleep any longer." That innocent voice calls again, slightly louder this time, and he decides to answer her if only so that she would leave him in peace.

"I'm up." He replies simply and receives a relieved sigh for his effort.

"That's good Ryoma-kun, please come downstairs soon."

"OK Nanako-san, Good morning." Footsteps recede back down the hallway and he climbs out of bed sighing in frustration....

.... It was going to be a LONG day, he could already tell....

 

________________ LINE? ____________________

 

"Kiritsu" One of the students, a taller-looking girl with brown eyes and shoulder length black hair, says after the bell rings promptly causing all of the students to stand from their seats as the Sensei walks in with me trailing behind him head down. Once everyone is standing the girl calls out, "Rei" and the children all bow, saying "onegaishimasu" as one before promptly returning to their seats. The man, Matsurou-sensei who looked to be in his late thirties early fourties with graying short black hair and tired green eyes, smiles at them and returns their ritual with a "Good morning" before going on to address the next topic...

... Me....

"Class, This is Echizen Ryoma who has transferred here from America." He says, looking at me expectantly. A flash of disappointment crosses his face when all I do is say "Please take care of me." and turn my head back to him after giving the class a bow. Obviously he had wanted, or at least expected, me to talk about themself. 

"Well then, why don't you go sit down by the window next to Horio-kun? Horio-kun please raise your hand." Matsurou-sensei recovers and a monkey-like boy with a unibrow raises his hand.

I would soon learn that I already knew most of the things being taught, "Fluent" english (At Seigaku at least) was deffinately far (Like the distance between the sun and Satern far) from perfect, the music program here was both the smallest and second worst run program in this part of Japan (Why am I stuck here then?), and Horio was apparently amazing at tennis with his two years of tennis experiance (Funny really, from my observations of simply his hand-eye cordination I had pinned him as a level 2 while being kind. Kevin would probably be torn between showing the poor idiot just enough true tennis skills that he would shut up and laughing himself to death right now. I however, just wanted to serve a tennis ball at his face but chose the friendlier option and ignored him all together in favor of a nap. Maybe Oyoji was wrong and Japanese level tennis isn't even worth my time to watch...). Overall, my day was spent sleeping, ignoring the kids in my class, being bored, and humiliating the Senseis...

... by the time the bell rang for the end of school I was beyond unimpressed already and my time at Seigaku was just about to get a whole lot worse....

....Who knew that simply knocking down a can full of rocks would cause me so much trouble?

 

__________________ POV Momoshiro ___________________

 

I was just about to go tell Arai to quit picking on the freshman. That kind of behavior wasn't OK, No it wasn't Yo! When Fuji put his hand on my arm to stop me and pointed at yet another freshman who was carying an instrament case (Why does he have an instrument with him? I don't even think we have a music program...) and standing there simply watching what was happening to his classmates with a bored expression on his face. There was a tennis racket nearby him, proubably belonging to one of the freshman from the group that was picking up balls not far from there trying to completely ignore what was going on around them. I look at Fuji questioningly, wanting to do something but to afraid of what the tensai could do to me for ruining his "fun".

"Saaa, let's watch for a bit. This looks like it could get interesting." He says and I shiver. Yah, Sorry freshies...

A tennis ball whizes into the court over the fence and swings just right to knock the can over, exposing the trick and sending rocks all over the court. Standing there stunned I blink a few times before swinging my head to see the white capped freshman putting a racket on the ground and turning away...

... No way....

.... Absolutely NO WAY ....

... Given the distance, fence, and need for precise accuracy it was questionable if even Buchou could make a shot like that...

... There was NO WAY a FRESHMAN could do that!

"Saaa... interesting.... Do you think he'll be joining the tennis club?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Everyone! I hope you like the story so far. Are the characters to OOC? I tries to keep them somewhat the same... and I probably spelled Buchou wrong again.... Anyway! Comments, suggestions, and questions welcome as always. I'm currently in the process of rough drafting the forth chapter of From the Mind of Ryoma Echizen (Which I have now officially nicknamed FtMoRE because that title is WAY to long.) and I'll be posting either the last chapter of Unnoticed or a Hetalia drabble some time in the next few weeks, definitely before the month is over. Until next time....
> 
> BYE!


	3. Captured

I glare at the brunette standing in front of me in such a way that he literally has me cornered, the spiky haired guy behind my target flinching but said target himself simply smiling away.

"Saa... It took a while to find you." The closed eyed teen comments, making me wonder just how long the two had been trying to corner me and why it just had to be while I was on my way to the music closet? (There is no way that "band room" was actually built to be a room in the original layout of this place. It was way to small for that to be the case.) Said teen's smile seems like Echo's when he was either up to no good or Hawk had just given him permission to truly unleash his level six form on his opponent. "Saa... we have a few questions for you if you don't mind." I minded, in fact I minded a lot. Blue orbs try to pin me in place but only manage to send a shiver down my back, Echo's was a whole lot worse considering the albino wasn't actually sane. Shifting my weight I jump, flip over the Echo wannabe and, (using Spiky haired guy's shoulders as a second platform to right myself in the air) land perfectly on my feet like the cat I was named after. I feel one shocked bewildered gaze and one piercing interested one on me as I walk (Read: Run) away from the duo.  
"Mada mada da ne."

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Warning to any new students attending Segaku: Never underestimate the tennis regulars here.

This statement should have been included in the handbook. Considering it would have been nice to know before I was dragged from my classroom by an overly hyper red head and chained to one of the court fences by the brunette Echo. It had been a week in this hell, and two days since my encounter with the second and third year, yet their data player had already gotten his hands on my name, age, weight, class number, and physical description. (I don't want to know how he found out my exact data. The saying "Ignorance is Bliss"... Yeah, the person who said that was referencing Data players' collecting techniques at the time. ) Chip would have managed it faster but then again the younger German of our "Clockwork" pair relied on his fast collecting skills to keep both siblings alive and with the upper hand on the court. Though not heavily, Hawk would never allow for that to happen since you need to be ready for anything and there is a chance for information flaws. Watching the regulars makes me see parts of my teammates in them. Not completely, just enough that I can delude myself for I little while.

Health stood over by the main bench for the regulars fussing over Bat who has gotten injured yet again but tried to play anyway despite his sprained ankle. Chip is standing by the gates spouting statistics to our captain who is waiting for me to arrive (late as always). Demon was leaning against a fence scaring everyone near him, more than likely something happened at the orphanage again but he won't let us know for a few more days. And Echo was talking to Kevin with that smile on his face that never meant anything good.

But then my illusion is broken as Echo returns to being the closed-eyed brunette and walks towards me.

"Saaa... How are you doing Ryo-chan?" he asks and I don't know whether to ignore him or snap at him for the definitely unwelcome nickname. Only Demon was allowed to call me by the suffix chan and even that was only when we were fighting (yet again). 

\------- around four years ago ------

"Everyone gather round." the fourteen year old brunette commands sharply and the five people immediately stop their warm ups to obey him. It would be funny how they almost seem to arrange by match order even when in a circle but I'm so nervous and scared out of my eight year old mind that I can't truly appreciate the true power this teen holds over the others.

"This is Ryoma and Kevin, for the next few practices we're going to try them out got it." He says and there is a collective "Understood!" from the others, later we would find out that the military type act is to try and scare off people before the team's time is wasted on them. (Funny really, I thought that was what training solely with Hawk over the past two months had been for...) Already though I could tell that the team's attention to our names was false. From what Hawk had told us on the way we would be getting new names for use around the other teams by the end of the month and that was also when we would learn the second name of our teammates....

If we lasted that is...

And I was going to last. This was my chance to once and for all become better then aniki and oyoji at tennis and gain their attention after all. Plus I had already managed the last two months (somehow).

Hawk starts naming off the people in front of us and I glance at Kevin as his grip on my hand tightens a bit to much. For some reason his terrified gaze was locked on some empty bottles that had been thrown carelessly into a bucket in the corner of the warehouse we were in. Tugging slightly I regain his concentration. We were going to do this together until the day came that we weren't so annoyingly even in terms of tennis skills.

First, obviously, was fourteen year old Captain Hawkeye "Hawk" Andor. He didn't tell us his real name but threatened us with hell if we ever used it. He had waist length brown hair that was kept back in a neat high ponytail and despite his seemingly weak build had the fierce golden brown eyes of a Hawk . (Probably what had made the animal his namesake.) He wasn't overly tall but no one could ever call him sort either (He's around Yukimura's height) and their was an accent to his speech that unknowingly to us proclaimed him to be Hungarian. He was Singles One, though he would pair up with Bat to help out a doubles pairing every once in a while.

Next was previously mentioned Bat. A fourteen year old Scot by the name of Angus Gaurdin. He was the vice captain, Singles two, and occasionally doubled with Hawk. Wild red hair framed his face and ended at his shoulders and one of his green eyes was covered by an eye patch. Apparently he and Hawk went to school together though he would't say which one.

Next was the only Japanese guy currently actually on the team. He had black hair that reminded me of what Oyoji's looked like in some of the old photos I had seen of him and his eyes were a cold calculating grey as he glared down at us like the two year age difference actually MEANT something. He wasn't formally introduced to us by name though because the happy go lucky albino next to him pulled on his sleeve before pointing at me once he had the ten year old's attention. Red eyes silently communicating the sentence that would condemn me it seems. 

Hawk rolls his eyes, Kevin smirks in laughter, Angus holds his head like he has a headache, one of the blondes freaks out and tries to pull us apart mumbling about safety, and the identical boy next to him starts writing things in a notebook. Why? Because this stupid rat just smirked and dared to call me Neko-chan...

...and I pounced at him...

\------ Preset -----

A horrible smell calls me from my memories and I blink a bit to see that the brunette Echo (I needed to find a new identifier for him...) was squatting down in front of me now holding a cup.

"Saa... it isn't nice to ignore people Ryo-chan." He says as he sips on the questionable drink. For the rest of practice I continue to do just that. After all, cats are known for their ability to sleep.

Regarding the warning I had just decided should be in the handbook I really shouldn't have...

\---- POV Tezuka----

Sighing I look over at the first year that had managed to attract my tensai and my headache instantly doubles. Originally I had put up a fight about it but as soon as Ryuusaki-sensei got a look at him my protests were useless. Apparently he was the son of some past student that was going through a rough patch. 

How that had anything to do with her allowing Fuji to chain him to the fence during practice I have yet to figure out.

To make matters worse Eiji had been late by five minutes because he had to go back and grab his things from his classroom, this in turn had caused Oishi to panics because he was absolutely sure that he had seen his doubles partner at practice before it started. Fuji and Inui were more interested in the green haired boy then practice also, Kawamura kept debating going over and talking to him. Momo had managed to sprain his ankle, some of the sophomores were picking on the freshman, one particular freshman had him considering kicking the boy out (for his own safety. Kaido and a majority of the upper years looked about ready to murder him) and he had yet to finalize the brackets for this month's competition. Shouting arises as Fuij gives Kawamura a racket...

...It was times like these that I wonder why I had accepted the role of team captain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello Everyone! I hope you like this story so far. To answer some of your questions, blood tennis is actually my version of extreme street tennis. It has the six levels, though the sixth level is categorized strangely and you'll read about that later in the story. (Ryoma has already vaguely touched upon them and as he is both the targeted main character and thinks in terms of the levels a lot so if you absolutely don't understand it in a few chapters ask again. I'll type out the layout of the levels for you.) The players have the same "super human" abilities however they don't necessarily wear special uniforms outside of what you would normally see for the average club or team. The courts are about double the size of an average "school yard" court and caged in. There are different levels of play each with differing rules. But the regular "matches" between the teams are unusually what happens. The question really in determining which level of play is to be used is how the challenge is presented. (I'll put these in previously mentioned layout later since it should be touched upon in the story soon but until then I'll give you basic descriptions.) 
> 
> School yard would be the every day tennis we get in PoT and is by far the most forgiving.
> 
>  
> 
> Match play is basically what is seen in EST and is the most used in actual scheduled tournaments. For those who don't want to go searching it is basically School yard on steroids. It was durring one of these that Kevin ended up in the coma that Ryoma mentions in the prolog.
> 
> Agility is when you try not to get hit by a ball while trying to hit your opponent. 
> 
> First blood is quite literally playing until one of you bleed. Points aren't necessarily accumulated in this, as they don't decide the winner, but the referee does keep track of them as a winner is supposed to be decided by the time one side would win in a school yard match.
> 
> Endurance is when they play until one side cant continue for some reason or another
> 
> Actual blood tennis would in fact be like what the other story had except that the winner is declared by which side is still breathing/conscious. 
> 
> (Extreme Streets Tennis by mel92 found abandoned on Fanfiction.net for anyone who doesn't know what I'm talking about. I actually got the idea for this fic while reading it but it shouldn't be too similar since EST was never finished and I'm planning to go in a completely different direction than it seemed to be anyway.) 
> 
> Reviews, comments, suggestions, requests, and other helpful criticism is welcome as always. Until next time...
> 
> ...Bye!


	4. Woried Reflections part 1

His curly brown hair had long ago escaped from the hair tie that had held it captive and was now flowing around him creating the illusion of wings. Narrowed blood thirsty golden orbs devoid of human conscious eye the bloody nearly unconscious being across the net like it was a prime piece of prey, he didn't even falter when his opponent managed to send the ball soaring into his right shoulder blade knocking him from his flip. The ground felt weird under his feet and his mind screamed at him to get back in the air, something he was more then willing to comply with. Studying his opponent as he sends a twist serve over the net, he could tell that if he looks anywhere near as bad as the 17 year old Health was going to- to what? Who could touch him now? The air was his domain, here he answered to no one. Here he was no one's replacement. The thought drove everything else out and soon all he could focus on was the intruder that dared to force it's presence into his territory. Everything else disappearing in a blood red fog.

After a while the ball strikes his prey in the forehead and it crumbles to the ground out cold. But that wasn't good enough. No, it would get back up any minute now and threaten his nest.

"Ha-"

What was that? 

"Hawk!"

That was his name right? He thought so anyway. Hawk, Hawkeye. Yes, a much better name then the one that man had forced upon him. Still, couldn't he just stay-

"Bachou!" Only one person called him that, but the voice was to young to be his little demon. Strong arms surround him and he fights against them. Wanting to fly again but the voices are too persistent and he can't break free. 

"Erzsebet calm down. Come back to me." It was the first voice he thinks, stopping his struggles as the red fog around him begins to clear and he feels the arms lift him off the ground before carrying him somewhere princess style. 

18 year old Erzsebet "Hawkeye" Andor's eyes open slowly and he looks around the room he is in as his mid puts itself back together; sighing when he realizes that he is in "his room" at that house and not on the bed back at the warehouse that the others had declared his "nest". It had only been a month and yet the need to see that his teammates were OK was overwhelming. He couldn't even contact any of them really. Bat's parents had sent him to a boarding school for the disabled (As if being half blind was a disability. The Scott was better on the court then most twice their age!), the adults at the orphanage had finally found a foster family that had lasted more then two weeks with Demon, Echo's uncle had recently noticed that his nephew wasn't speaking and admitted him into a mental hospital until he did (Good luck with that the boy's been mute for five years now.), the twins had been sent to Germany to live with their older brother until things calmed down at their house, Kitten's parents had moved him to Japan with almost no warning at all, and the Puppy was still sleeping away without a care in the world unless he had finally woken up. 

Hawk gets out of bed and throws on a white blouse and a knee length plaid skirt dreaming of actually dressing the part of his actual gender. Great idea, but one that wasn't going to happen anytime in the near future nor had for the past month. All of his male clothes were either at the warehouse or with Angus and he couldn't gain access to either. It didn't help that instead of looking less like her as he had gotten older he actually seemed to become more and more the spitting image of his namesake and mother. Only further adding to that man's belief that his son was actually his wife's incarnation. How the man had even come up with that idea was completely beyond Hawk's ability to comprehend.

Sometimes he couldn't help but hate that woman who had died while in labor with him.

Twisting his obnoxiously long hair up into a bun he throws his school bag over his shoulder and grabs a pair of socks before heading out the door to the kitchen. Not looking forward to another "test" from the man who couldn't decide between being his father or a ghost's husband.

\------ Line -----

"Nauzoo, could you pick up your sister after school today?" The woman who had declared herself my "Mother" a few weeks ago asks and I grit my teeth trying not to scream at her that my name was Nezumi, Fujiwara Nezumi, NOT Nauzoo. What the hell was wrong with her? The team had never had so much trouble with my name. And with most of them having distinct accents it wasn't as if the name came naturally to them either. Well, for Neko-chan it had but that was about it. The Dog had the worst accent in the world and seemed to have an anti-Japanese ward around him yet it had taken him half this long to get it. Also, last time I checked that brat was not my sister. Of course before I could answer the guy who had decided that I didn't actually want to go back to the orphanage and was just acting out because no one had ever cared for me properly before answered for me.

"Of course he will. It's not like it's that far out of his way. Remember she gets out at 3:30. The teachers get worried when the kids aren't picked up on time." he says happily and I keep my mouth shut like a good little 14 year old foster son. Though I guess that the hundred different ways I could murder them if only I had my tennis racket would shatter the image. But, as Hawk-bachou always says, they're idiots who will probably never know you well enough to read your mind. I hope he's doing OK, last time I saw him he was walking funny again and Bat-Fukubachou was looking ready to murder someone. 

Grabbing my piece of toast I place my plate in the sink before picking up my school bag and muttering goodbye to the idiots. Maybe I could get into the warehouse and grab my racket. There was no way I was actually going to school today.

"Ah, wait a minute son I'll give you a ride to school."

Damn it!

\--- Line ---

"What are you doing?" A voice asks from behind me and I turn to see girl maybe a year or two younger then me. She had shoulder length curly brown hair that was put up into two pigtails and was wearing a dress that made her look like a doll. Still, something didn't quite fit about her but I couldn't figure out what. 

"If you want to tell me of course." She says blushing, golden eyes redirecting to gaze at her feet and I realize I had been staring at her. My cheeks heat up in embarrassment and I quickly stumble out my answer awkwardly.

"Practicing tennis." Her eyes light up with curiosity and she comes closer. "Tennis? I think I've heard of that before. You hit a ball over a net and try to get the other person not to hit it back right?" Laughing I nod, "My older brother is on the middle school team. He said he would help me with my grip after school." I don't know why I feel the need to say that Donnell is probably going to tease me about it later, he always seems to know everything! 

"I'm Angus Gaurdin by the way." I say, if I'm going to be teased it might as well know the name of the reason and she doesn't seem very willing to start the introductions. The girl freezes, and her body tenses, looking down at her feet.

"...Erzsebet Andor" She replies hesitantly after a while. Her voice small and she glances up looking as if she expects me to hate her for some reason. Seeming surprised when I smile and offer her the hand that wasn't holding my racket, "Nice to meet you."

Thinking about that day twelve years ago still brings a smile to my lips even if it currently brings tears to my eyes as well, I was so oblivious as a child. It had taken me nearly a month and a half before I had realized that Hawk was a boy and even then it was only because I had asked my parents why no one else seemed to like him very much. Donnell was the one who had actually answered, our parents didn't seem to know what to say.

Looking back I don't think anyone could have expected that timid six year old cross dresser to take to tennis like a bird to the sky. Even simply connecting quiet unassuming Erzsebet Andor that everyone saw at school with the blood covered Hawkeye that the team saw on the street court was hard...

"Break's over Gaurdin. Do you need help getting back to the classroom?" I sigh, shaking my head no at the aide as I stood. Knowing they are only trying to help doesn't make me feel any less annoyed with them. I don't really know why my parents decided to place me here now, I mean my eye has been MIA since that street match when I was ten, but if these people keep treating me as if I have been completely blind for only a week they're going to have to put me in a mental hospital.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello Everyone! I hope you liked this chapter of Blood Tennis and had a great Thanksgiving (If you celebrate it). I got a lot of questions on what was happening back in America so I decided that this chapter and the next one would go through the current lives of the rest of Ryoma's old street team. (As well as give you a bit more insight on their characters). I got a suggestion recently to have Yukimura also play Blood Tennis, what do you think? I'd also like to know if I should have Kevin ever wake up from his coma... Currently I think he should but other days I think he shouldn't. As always reviews, comments, and suggestions are welcome. Until next time...
> 
> ... Bye!


	5. Worried Reflections part 2

"Is there a reason you won't talk to us Jason?" One of my psychiatrists, Anthony I believe, asks and I wish I had the ability to shout YES! at him. Instead I curl up into a ball on the couch in his office and rest my head on my knees. I wish Nezu was here. He always understood what I wanted to say. Even back when I could talk but instead chose to speak very little and in circles he was able to immediately strip my words of the games and know what I wasn't saying. I smile thinking of all the insults he would be thinking up right now about the black haired guy sitting in front of me.

 

Said guy continues to go on and on about how it was OK to talk and that everything I said would be confidential (yeah right). It appears that he is playing the "Concerned adult" card this time. I don't know which is better, I can ignore the concerned act a lot better than I could ignore the pissed off one. But pissed off was more amusing and kind of reminded me of Nezu when he was fighting with Kitten. 

 

Nezu came by as soon as he herd that my uncle had stuck me in here but they wouldn't let him see me. Uncle has them all completely convinced he's my abusive (now ex) boyfriend, or something as equally obsurd. He isn't my boyfriend. Those are unimportant, replaceable, no.

 

He's my grounder.

 

Like Hawk and Bat, the twins, and Kev and Ryo, we look out for each other. Blood tennis was dangerous, we all knew that, passing farther than the third door left the possibility of never coming back. Someday Hawk would forget to land, Bat would be lost to that black void, Health wouldn't wake up, Chip would forget the world beyond the seemingly endless numbers, Kevin would lose sight of Ryoma, Kitten would remain falling from that cliff, Nezu would be trapped in that blood covered world, and I would be unable to pull myself away from the noise. It had already almost happened once.

 

I don't think Nezu ever forgave himself for that day.

 

\--- Five years and some odd months earlier ---

 

The game was over. The 17 year old that had dared to comment on me (I don't even know WHAT was said that set Nezu off like this, I'll make him tell me later.) lay in a pool of his own blood on the opposite side of the net from Demon. Had for a while now if we were honest about the situation. Nezu however, hadn't come down and it was worrying Hawk. Out of balls the other team goes to attend to their more than likely critically injured player while our own seethes and Hawk makes his way to the cage, Angus right behind him as always.

 

Then I did something stupid.

 

I ran.

 

Fear engulfing me from the sad green and pitying golden gazes that rested on MY Demon I rush onto the court, past the two elder players, and plead Nezu to come back. The words not even seeming to faze through the bloody haze that has taken away one of my only friends. Angus grabs me before I can reach out and touch him though, trying to hold me back as other teams assess the situation and more players start appearing on the court to help.

 

One of the newbies doesn't heed Hawk's orders not to touch Nezu and the seething Demon whirls around to face his "attacker". Tennis racket rises...

 

... And the world goes black.

 

\--- Present ---

 

I had woken up in the Warehouse two days later. An exhausted looking Nezu sleeping around me as if he were a little kid and I was his teddy bear. Bandages were around my neck and I heard the others debating if they needed to take me to the hospital.

 

I would never to talk again.

 

With the way Nezu carried on about it it was as if he had actually LIKED the sound of my voice despite the fact that he used to complain about that very same thing. Still, I didn't mind being mute. Everyone who mattered could understand me without words anyway and a voice was a small price to pay if it gave me Nezu back in return.

 

Now if only he were here.

 

\---Line---

 

"01100011 01100001 01101100 01101101 00100000 01100100 01101111 01110111 01101110 00100000 01001000 01100101 01100001 01101100 01110100 01101000 00101100 00100000 01100101 01100101 01110010 01111001 00100000 01110100 01101000 01101001 01101110 01100111 01110011 00100000 01100111 01101111 01101001 01101110 01100111 00100000 01110100 01101111 00100000 01100010 01100101 00100000 01100110 01101001 01101110 01100101 00101110" (Calm down Health, everything's going to be fine.) Chip says and Health looks over at his brother with a slight smile but doesn't loosen the death hold he has on his doubles partner's hand. 

 

"You do realize that no one else here can understand Binary code right? Großer Bruder only bothered to learn it well enough to get Father off his case. Besides, how can I possibly calm down! There's a 75 percent chance that Kitten has killed himself by no-"

 

"10 percent chance he killed someone else, 5 percent chance he has run away from home, 3 percent chance he has convinced his parents to move back, and a 2 percent chance that he managed to actually get a fresh start and make satisfactory friends." Chip cuts in, finishing his twin's percentages.

 

"And taking into account the Echizen factor, which clearly states that any and all predictions shall be defied no matter how impossible it should be, we should actually flip those calculations." Continues the two minutes younger blonde even before his brother has completed his question to himself if he should argue. Seeing the point the human data player sighs as he turns away and sulks.

 

"You still shouldn't be talking in Binary, remember elementary school? I'd rather not have a repeat." Chip raises an eyebrow at that. Of course he remembered elementary school, it was scientifically prove that the harder you tried to make yourself forget something the harder it would be.

 

No one would talk to them.

 

The Klien family had come over from Germany years ago after the Second World War Despite the extreme prejudice and opposition they had built a company that centered on most things technical (at least they had spread to that by now. Before it was simply computer programming) and has remained at the top of the charts ever since. Being traditionally a family run company it only made sense that their Father had worked there after school and then proceed to choose from their Grandfather's list of the employees he had deemed 'suitable' for him to marry. Right? That was what they were brought up to believe was expected anyway. Though their older brother seemed to be completely against it, and had been for as long as they could truly remember. 

 

Being in that kind of family created problems.

 

First, their parents were constantly fighting about absolutely everything all the time. Or at least all the times the twins had actually been around them. Second, in order to avoid these fights, at least according to Health who actually did seem to understand the human psychology pretty well for a thirteen year old, they buried themselves in their work. A seven month record stood for the longest time period the twins had gone without even catching a glimpse of either parent while the adults were living home. Three years was the record for "business trips" by the way. And no, they never contacted any of their three children while away. Chip had firmly believed they didn't even realize they had children until someone "embarrassed" them by not meeting standards or what had happened a month ago. Though it might have actually been just the servants and their parents didn't know they were out of the country...Third was that they couldn't seem to go anywhere without someone knowing them, at least in the United States, and constantly had to make sure that nothing that would set off their parents could be written about them. Fourth, but not last even if this is the end of the written list, was the fact that they had basically grown up at their future workplace. At first it had been for good publicity, Dedrich Klien presenting the image of the busy father still making sure to share his time with his offspring, but later the servants had simply found it easier to allow them to go. The toddlers had loved it, and the employees certainly never complained. It wasn't stopped since the workers seemed to get more accomplished faster and at better quality in an attempt to impress their charges and if it was all they knew they couldn't stray from the Path of Klien like their brother had.

 

Thus, at seven years old Gabriel Klien had only known how to speak in Binary. It had been cute for a while when he was younger, acceptable when he got older since he rarely left the building and everyone inside knew the code used to program computers like the back of their hands. 

 

It was not, however, acceptable in the eyes of their first grade teacher Ms. Brick. 

 

They had lasted about a day before she had realized that. To this day Health believes it to be their greatest accomplishment. Between her and the other children though, Chip had refused to go to school after about a month. Taking to hiding out at work or at home, it might not sound successful but since only Mitchel could find him at any given moment in time and refused to out the other blond, it had worked rather well. The twins starting homeschooling only two months later, Health's continued attendance only having lasted about three weeks longer then his brothers had been.

 

Until a month ago when they had been boarded onto a plane to Germany and forced by their older brother to attend a nearby university prep school.

 

"01001000 01100001 01110111 01101011 00100000 01101100 01100101 01100001 01110010 01101110 01100101 01100100 00101110" (Hawk learned)

 

"Hawkeye isn't here."

 

"01001000 01100101 00100000 01110011 01101000 01101111 01110101 01101100 01100100 00100000 01100010 01100101 00101110" (He should be.)

 

"Is the computer actually having human emotions?"

 

"..."

 

"Don't go silent on me Chip, I'm already bored out of my mind since I can't study to be a nurse. I won't survive without you."

 

"01000010 01110010 01101111 01110100 01101000 01100101 01110010 00100000 01110111 01101111 01110101 01101100 01100100 00100000 01110000 01110010 01101111 01100010 01100001 01100010 01101100 01111001 00100000 01110011 01110101 01110000 01110000 01101111 01110010 01110100 00100000 01111001 01101111 01110101 00100000 01101001 01101110 00100000 01110100 01101000 01100001 01110100 00100000 01101001 01100110 00100000 01111001 01101111 01110101 00100000 01110100 01101111 01101100 01100100 00100000 01101000 01101001 01101101 00101110" (Brother would probably support you in that if you told him.)

 

"There's too high a chance that Father would find out. You know what he thinks about me wanting to be a nurse."

 

"01010100 01101000 01100001 01110100 00100000 01101001 01110100 00100111 01110011 00100000 01100001 00100000 01110111 01101111 01101101 01100001 01101110 00100111 01110011 00100000 01101010 01101111 01100010 00100000 01100001 01101110 01100100 00100000 01111001 01101111 01110101 00100000 01100001 01101100 01110010 01100101 01100001 01100100 01111001 00100000 01101000 01100001 01110110 01100101 00100000 01100001 00100000 01100011 01100001 01101100 01101100 01101001 01101110 01100111 00100000 01100101 01101100 01110011 01100101 01110111 01101000 01100101 01110010 01100101 00101110 00100000" (That it's a woman's job and you already have a calling elsewhere.)

 

"Exactly. Now stop using Binary."

 

"01001110 01101111 00101110" (No.)

 

\--- Line ---

 

In a hospital somewhere in California an orangey-blonde boy sleeps away in his comatose state. Completely oblivious to the fact his world had gone to ruins. Though I guess that's a good thing, since if he did know he would make sure to never wake up again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! First things first...
> 
>  
> 
> Binary codes are curtesy of http://www.binarytranslator.com
> 
>  
> 
> Anyway... I hope you liked the glance at the rest of the team, I'm probably going to switch back to Ryoma next chapter though. Obviously every one of those kids are messed up in some way... Would you like me to have them more involved with the story? If so, how do you think they should be worked in? Reviews, comments, and suggestions are always welcome! Until next time...
> 
>  
> 
> ...Bye!


	6. A Prince is Born

Chapter Five: A Prince is Born

If looks could kill then that piece of paper would have burned to ashes at least three minutes ago under the golden glare that had been staring at it as if willing it's contents to change.

This of course was impossible so the paper neither changed nor burned.

He was so not coming to school tomorrow.

\---------

Right then Ryoma was two things, one common and the other... very few could recognize: pissed and scared. When Oyoji had first declared him a Seigaku student (and he had finally resigned himself to that fate) he had looked up and assured himself that first years were NOT ALLOWED to be a regular...

... So why was he now alone on a tennis court?

The emerald haired boy hisses in annoyance and turns to walk off only for the brunet Echo, who he now knew was named Fuji something but that took to much effort to truly remember, to shove a racket into his hands and turn him back around. He was going to refuse to play regardless or at the very least, God have mercy on him for Hawk-buchou surely wouldn't, throw the match...

... But then that thing opened his mouth.

"Let the brat leave Fuji-senpai, we all know I'm going to win this anyway." Ryoma froze, What did that idiot just say? Did he not hear himself? The fool takes the silence as an obvious sign to continue and for once the kitten's grip on a tennis racket holds solidly in one position, something that hadn't occurred in years.

"Besides, this is the Middle School Boy's Team, she should be on Left Campus where the Elementary girls make fools of themselves." Golden eyes narrowed before going blank so fast that only Fuji picks up on it. Thanking the Senpai Ryoma proceeds to step up to the service line (The idiot across the net having given his opponent the first serve "so they stood a chance" before he had found out just who that would be...), forcing the fear away by replacing the brunette with his albino counterpart. Kevin's presence or not he wasn't going to take being talked to like that.

Besides, the mutt wasn't worth the effort to turn his clothes red.

Everyone holds their breath as the 12-year-old serves. He wouldn't lose himself if he made sure to remember reality and he knew just how to do that.

Thus the match starts with Demon's twist serve.

Lost in memories, his body forges a style and personality completely different from the acrobatic grip master doubles specialist he was back in America. He'd always truly be that yes, but that boy belonged to his team...

... And these people didn't deserve him.

\--- POV Fuji---

Watching the chibi move I'm glad that I convinced Mitsu to put him into the tournament, even though it's obvious he's holding back and hasn't developed his own style yet he manages to crush Arai-kun a little too well.

There's a raw imperial air that wraps around him like a cape reminding me of the first time I had watched Sei-chan and his boy-toy, Mitsu, or Atobe-san play. His feet seem restless, his grip keeps loosening as if he were planning on changing it's position before his fingers tighten once more on the handle almost too tightly, and his movements are stiff but there is no doubt.

He is royalty.

My eyes meet Mitsu's and I see the same recognition that is reflected in my own, paired with the hungry desire that was what made Mitsu so cute. It was funny really how easy it was to see his need to grasp onto another's potential and guide it, pushing them to their limits before coaxing them beyond even those.

Yet the boy himself was clueless about it.

The result of the match doesn't surprise me very much, but the "Mada Mada Dane" at the end is as strange to my ears as it seems to be to his lips and the small sigh of relief the emerald haired boy lets out as he returns the racket, hand almost snapping away from the handle as if the object were disgusting, doesn't go unnoticed. Our Little Prince was hiding something...

... And I was going to find out what...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi Everyone! Sorry this took do long but I hadn't thought I would be having uploading problems from this cite (Fanfiction.net not AO3). Now that the excuses are done I'll move on to an actual author's note. This could probably be longer and I'll probably write this match from several different perspectives in the next chapter if only to make it really long or something like that, I hadn't thought it was so short until I had finally managed to post it. I know Ryoma doesn't face Arai in the competitions but I wanted to have them face each other and they are the second match in the series (I believe...) but I couldn't do the first since Ryoma wouldn't go to that competition. Which means I've basically screwed over Sakuno's hero worship of him... oh well, any ideas on how to deal with that? Reviews of all kinds welcome as always. Until next time...
> 
> ...Bye!


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